Yesterday I emphasized that God’s own people have been cycling through faithfulness and failure for millennia. One generation believes, but the next falls away. And even when they do believe — as we see in Jesus’ day — it is not always in the right way. Their faith is filtered through the lens of the law, and the law, rather than bringing life, too often brings death.

Hebrews 8 speaks of the new covenant: “This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.” This is God writing on human hearts. Then, by calling this covenant new, He has made the first one obsolete, and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.

My friend, often times we believe God’s promises are true, yet the law still feels like something chiseled on stone tablets rather than written on our hearts. The answer is Christ crucified. Through His atoning work and the power of the Holy Spirit, God does what the law never could. Here is your encouragement: through Christ crucified, God is no longer moving His Spirit into a building or a temple made of stone — but into a person, and into a people. You will know in your heart what is aligned with God, not because you have memorized the rules, but because His Spirit lives within you.